


Lost Children's Home

by NerdyTrashyFunny



Category: VIXX
Genre: Bad Decisions, Bad Parenting, Bullying, Friends to Lovers, Love in hopeless places, M/M, Taekwoon's POV mostly, little angsty, teenage years, troublemakers, yes I can't write a single story with at least a bit of smut I know alright
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-13
Updated: 2018-09-13
Packaged: 2019-07-11 23:24:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15982697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NerdyTrashyFunny/pseuds/NerdyTrashyFunny
Summary: Taekwoon and Wonshik are not even 18 years old, and yet they had to endure a lot in their lives. This is a story of how they came together in a place that neither of them ever expected to find true happiness in. But it takes a lot of pain for them to get there, especially for one of them.





	Lost Children's Home

**Author's Note:**

> Please forgive me if this feels rushed to you. This is a typical late night idea of mine and I wrote half of this on a train. But it is proof-read (once, by me, lol) and finished as far as I am concerned. Comment what you think, I take compliments and criticism alike!

The ride to Taekwoon's new home was long and dull. On the rancid old bus, there were at least twenty other children that shared the same fate as him, and yet he felt alone and misunderstood. Outside, there was not much to see expect for empty countryside, and yet he opted for staring outside the window for the whole, hourlong ride, just to avoid having to interact with the other hopeless in the vehicle.

 

Lost in his thoughts, Taekwoon pondered how he had gotten into this situation. What happened at home, the police and the hearings... He wondered if it was for better or for worse that the court decided to send him some place safe, after everything that had happened. It would be foolish to miss home, at least not the way it had been when he left, but still... Taekwoon wished to be somewhere else, especially after realzing that he would not be able to tune out the noise around him anymore.

 

With slanted eyes, he assessed his surroundings. Next to him, there was another boy around his age, thankfully sleeping instead of making a fuss like the other ones around him. Behind Taekwoon, someone had taken a liking in kicking the exact seat he was sitting in. But Taekwoon knew better than to comment on it, instead just hoping that the overgrown jock with the nervous feet would just grow tired and bored of it, eventually.

 

The row in front of him was occupied by two boys that were chatting awfully loudly about anything that came to their minds. At first, Taekwoon thought that they must have known each other before all of this, but after listening for a while, he realized that they actually just met and decided on a whim to compare their "achievements" in life. Said achievements reached from smaller felonys such as stealing a jug of beer from a gas station over speeding with their dad's expensive car and running into a park bench, over to less funny incidents like breaking a poor kid's arm or harassing a girl until she left school... Taekwoon felt nothing but disgust creeping up his throat when he heard how apparently, it was now admirable to be horrible human being. At this point, Taekwoon had enough and refrained from eavesdropping any longer. The feeling of being out of place felt even stronger to him now than ever before.

 

After another eternity of enduring the snores of his seat neighbor while also trying his best to ignore the loud chatter of the people around them, hindering him from getting a little bit of sleep as well, the ride ended in the most secluded place Taekwoon had even seen. And that had to mean something, coming from a kid that grew up in a neighborhood that didn't even have a real supermarket.

 

When the bus passed through the gate that stood tall and intimidating at the edge of the property, Taekwoon managed to catch some of the words on the sign next to it: Nikki's home for lost children - a place for the broken hearted and the ones who seek to find meaning in their life. Taekwoon huffed, highly doubting that anyone would find the meaning to his life in a place like this. 

 

But as soon as the bus approached the house that lay in the middle of the plot, Taekwoon at least had to admit that the place itself looked more impressive than his surroundings. It was a massive building, mostly made of dark wood and harsh lines, and yet... The colorful curtains, the well kept garden in front of it and the green vines that crept up basically every wall of the house gave it a very nostalgic, almost homely look. And the place looked like it could house at least four buses full of kids like the one that had just arrived, so that's something. 

 

After a quick talk to the driver, a middle aged woman announced without further ado to the children that this is where they would spend the rest of their teen years if they wanted to learn how to make something of themselves - or their shitty, broken lives, Taekwoon thought to himself. Another introduction was not needed, apparently, and all of them were urged to leave the bus as quickly as possible. 

 

Since Taekwoon had been sitting in the middle area, it took a while until the children in front of him made room for the people in the back, so Taekwoon was rather eager to finally be able to move his long legs after they had gotten rather stiff in such a cramped space. That's why he stood up without giving the people around him another glance, not noticing the leg that was quickly extended in front of him. He tripped and fell flat on his face in the middle of the bus since he was not able to catch himself on any of the seats. After a few seconds of just lying there, once again contemplating his life and wondering why, of all people, it had to be him, Taekwoon stood up and decided not to comment on it. After all, it might have been an accident, right? But the gleeful, low chuckles of the obvious perpetrator, a dark haired boy with piercing eyes and a short ponytail, made his blood boil inside his veins nonetheless. 

 

"Hurry, hurry! We don't have all day, now get off this goddamn bus, all of you!", the woman from before pressed again, so Taekwoon swallowed his pride and quickly walked towards the front exit, although he took more care of his footing now than before. 

 

After getting his bag with his personal belongings - a sad collection of clothings, an old phone and a few photos, depicting better and happy times, Taekwoon entered the large building that would now become his home. More personell was already waiting for them inside and as soon as everybody had arrived and was neatly lined up inside the entrance hallway, the mostly tired and confused kids were bombarded by a litany of names, instructions and house rules. Taekwoon did not listen to any of it, he was sure that all of this would be repeated several times in the following days and right now, he just wanted to get a room with a bed and sleep for at least twelve hours. 

 

Before his wish would get granted and he could finally head upstairs to his room - apparently, everybody had their own room to avoid fighting and mischief behind closed doors, that much Taekwoon had caught without actually paying attention - someone grabbed his arm and pulled him to the side. With a frown, Taekwoon saw that it was the boy that had tripped him earlier on the bus, so Taekwoon expected another form of harassment. But instead, the boy said: "Hey, about earlier! I'm really sorry about that. You know, after the long ride, I was just bored and jittery and had to do SOMETHING. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, nothing personal I swear. Apology accepted? I'm Wonshik by the way."

 

In fact, Taekwoon did not understand a bit what this Wonshik guy was taking about and why he thought that it was OK to harass somebody if it was just random asshole behavior instead of asshole behavior with a specific motive. He didnt even look really apologetic while delivering his speech since he was sporting this shit eating grin on his face that would surely drive Taekwoon mad if he looked any longer at it. Up close, Taekwoon had to admit that Wonshik did not look as intimidating as before, he was a bit smaller than him actually and not exactly wide built. Still, Taekwoon followed his mantra of not starting any shit with anybody and decided to leave it at that, nodding pointedly while dearly hoping that Wonshik would get the hint and finally let go of his arm now and leave him alone for the rest of his life. And so he did, at least concerning the first part, and Taekwoon could finally fall flat into his bed. 

 

\-----------

 

After the first hectic days where the new arrivals where practically buried in work and responsibilities, giving them basically no time to rest (or get any weird ideas, supposedly), Taekwoon was exhausted. Yes, he was thankful that his mind was distracted by all the work and rules, but he also wished that something else would happen here. Something that was not tiring or boring or both. So far, he had not talked to any of the other kids, instead he constantly looked for quiet places around the house where he could escape their awful loud voices and the eventual fighting that would happen between the more testosterone driven individuals. He'd never been a social person before, but he now regretted that he had nobody he could turn to when he felt like it. Even when most of the people around here were truly unbearable due to their violent tendencies and general distaste of social norms.

 

Thinking about how he could get out of this dilemma, Taekwoon did not find any sleep that night. He simply lay on his back with folded hands on his chest, staring at the ceiling and hoping that this was not everything life had to offer him. Yes, he was already 17 and would not have to spend as many years in this house as some of the other kids - some of them had to stay until 21, like him, others even longer or at least until they were deemed socially acceptable again - but the prospect of being stuck in this place for even one year made him feel hopeless. 

 

Just as Taekwoon's eyes had grown tired of staring at the same damn spot on the wall and he was ready to finally drift into slumber, he could hear loud footsteps in front of his door, followed by awful noises of something breaking and angry shouts by one of the housekeepers. Someone was definitely running around the house and was probably chased by personell, whatever the reason might be. The loud, unexpected noises in the middle of the night hurt his ears, and yet, Taekwoon was intrigued. He wanted to get up and take a peek out of the door in order to see what was going on there, but before he could do that, the footsteps got louder and louder until they halted right in front of his door. Breathless and with a bottle of whiskey in his hand, none other than Wonshik quickly slipped inside Taekwoon's room and leaned against the wall opposite to the side where the door opened to. Which turned out to be a smart decision because just a few moments later, one of the staff opened the door again (without knocking, how rude) and wanted to take a look inside.

 

Addressing Taekwoon, who was still half lying, half sitting in his bed, the woman asked whether he knew where the other boy had went. Taekwoon feigned ignorance and shook his head, too dumbfounded to say anything and trying his best not to look at Wonshik who was grinning like an idiot only half a meter away from his persecutor. Taekwoon was absolutely sure that the woman would enter the room and turn around at least once to take a closer look, which would have immediately revealed Wonshik's hiding spot and would have gotten them into big trouble. But instead, the woman left again, opting to search somewhere else for the boy. Of course, she would not have much luck with that, but Taekwoon did not even feel one bit of regret about disobeying this time....

 

"Thanks, man. I really appreciate it! We gotta stick together in situations like this, right?", Wonshik happily exclaimed as soon as everything was clear. He stumbled over to Taekwoon's bed and took a seat at the edge of the mattress – without asking for permission, Taekwoon thought with a hint of distaste. But he couldn't really blame the other boy that was obviously quite intoxicated already. Wonshik took a large swig from the half-empty bottle and offered it to Taekwoon who accepted it with clumsy fingers and wondered what the" we " in Wonshik's statement could have meant.... "men" in general, everybody in this house or more like him and Wonshik in particular. Either way, the whiskey tasted awful as it slid down Taekwoons throat and he frowned about the heavy aftertaste.

 

"I know, right? Tastes awful, but I took it from their naughty stache because it looked expensive and easy to get drunk from. Wasn't wrong about either."

 

Taekwoon said nothing, only staring at Wonshik in open disbelief. He had never heard about such a stache before, but he could imagine how hard it must have been to steal from, taken the strictness and carefulness of every person that worked in the children's home. For some weird reason, knowing this filled Taekwoon with a weird sense of pride and giddiness. Like he was Wonshik's complice in an elaborate crime.

 

"Next time, I will steal something else. Of course, they will have moved the stuff somewhere else until then. Would be stupid not to. Still, wasn't as hard to find the first time, so they probably won't be that clever about it the second time as well. Might take a phone or two that actually have games on them or something like that."

 

Again, Taekwoon had no idea what to answer to such a weird statement. He had never met a person like Wonshik before and honestly, he wasn't sure what the other boy would do next. It seemed just as likely to him that Wonshik would try to harass him again, simply because he felt like it, or he could just as well pull a white rabbit out of his sleeve. Anything was possible in Taekwoon's eyes.

 

"You don't talk much, do you?", Wonshik said while raising his eyebrows in a sort of disapproving manner.

 

"And you talk awfully much"

 

Taekwoon startled when Wonshik started laughing at that, again with this low voice that sounded more like a bark than real giggling.

 

"Those were the first words I have heard from you since... No, the first words I have EVER heard from you. Wow, those will so go down in history, I am sure of it"

 

Wonshik offered him the bottle again and wriggled his eyebrows, which honestly made Taekwoon a bit uncomfortable. But that wasn't the reason Taekwoon refused.

 

"No, but thanks. I'd rather have a beer to be honest..."

 

"I get that. Next time, I'll bring you one if you let me crash here again, deal?"

 

Taekwoon couldnt help but laugh at such boldness. Wonshik was so sure that there would be a second time, not even believing in the possibility that he would most likely get kicked out when the woman who ran the children's home found out about the incident. He was truly wondering whether Wonshik was really brave or just stupid. Or maybe a mixture of both. And yet, it would have been a lie to say that he wasn't excited about the idea of hiding Wonshik in his room again, maybe even going as far as actively helping him with one of his foolish stunts ... 

 

As Wonshik wanted to add another snarky remark, Taekwoon quickly pressed the palm of his hand against Wonshik's lips and raised the finger of his other hand against his own mouth, signaling the other to stay quiet.

 

A few moments later, Wonshik heard as well what was going on. There was someone patrolling along the hallway, probably the woman from before or another person looking for Wonshik. As long as the person outside could be heard, Taekwoon did not even dare to breathe, suddenly feeling nervous again to get caught and get punished for hiding Wonshik in his room. But luckily, nobody checked Taekwoon's room again. When both of the boys deemed the situation safe again, Taekwoon retrieved his hand and took a deep breath, not even hiding his relief.

 

"You heard the footsteps before me, even over my talking. I'm impressed. You must have really good ears."

 

Taekwoons face turned beetred at the unexpected compliment. To him, his sensitive sense of hearing was more of a curse than a blessing. But somehow, when Wonshik talked so differently about it, even going as far as praising him for it, it didn't seem so awful after all.

 

"Thanks. I guess it's handy in situations like these. But when I'm around all these people while eating or working in the garden... It often gets too much and I want to run and hide somewhere."

 

Taekwoon had no idea why he was telling Wonshik so much about his personal struggle. He was basically a stranger and after the way their first meeting had taken place... Well, no one would have blamed him when he's said that he despised the obnoxious troublemaker. But that wasn't the case at all. Yet, he would not have been that surprised to hear that Wonshik wouldn't care about his statement at all and just continued being his loud and annoying self...

 

Instead, Wonshik once again was up for a surprise. When he spoke again, Taekwoon could swear that it was much quieter than before, close to a careful whisper. But it could have been his imagination or maybe Wonshik was just acting nice as long as he needed to hide, it was hard to tell.

 

"I guess we all carry our own burdens ... In this place more than anywhere else. But let me tell you, I bet you are amazing at playing look-out!"

 

"Yeah? And I suppose you have a lot of experience with that kind of thing?"

 

"What can I say … I come around."

 

Wonshik shrugged and suddenly backed away from Taekwoons bed, taking another sip of the bottle - which was at least two thirds empty by now. For a moment, Taekwoon feared that he might have angered the other boy with his words, but then Wonshik proudly announced:

 

"Alright, thanks again for your hospitality. I'll be sure to repay you with that beer one day, pinky promise. See you around."

 

And with that, Wonshik made an awkward bow and disappeared into the hallway as quickly as he had entered Taekwoon's room earlier. Or rather Taekwoon's life...

 

~~~~~~~

 

The following weeks, Wonshik stuck to Taekwoon like glue. Honestly, it was hard to think of a moment when Wonshik wasn't around... Which had its good and its bad sides. For one, Taekwoon wasn't sitting alone at meals anymore and he truly enjoyed the presence of someone that he knew. Well, to say that he knew Wonshik was a bit exaggerated. There was still so much that kept him wondering, for example how easy it was for Wonshik to switch between different personas. In one moment, he could appear very nice, almost caring with the way he quietly talked to Taekwoon over dinner to avoid hurting his sense of hearing. And then one second later, he would kick somebody under the table because he didn't like his face or start a fight with one of the personnell, often resulting in him getting taken to the woman that was running the children's home. Taekwoon had never seen her before, but from Wonshik's stories he could tell that she was a fierce, but very understanding woman. Wonshik often made fun of how she would swallow any lie that he would feed her, but Taekwoon was rather sure that she willingly gave Wonshik chance after chance because she saw something in him. Maybe even something similar to what Taekwoon was seeing.

 

On other days, Taekwoon couldnt hide his annoyance with the younger boy - he had recently found out that Wonshik was one year younger than him and honestly, Taekwoon still had no idea how he should feel about that. Wonshik would sometimes show up in the worst possible moments, like when Taekwoon was in the middle of finally getting something done in terms of work, just to be interrupted by another stupid idea that Wonshik had to bring to the table.

 

"But listen to me, Taekwoon! Like this, We could clog all the toilets in the house within 5 minutes tops, but it would take them at least two hours to get all of them free again! Two hours, can you imagine how much we could do in that time, we could -"

 

"I said no! God, some people still want to use those toilets! I don't want to pee in the garden, thank you very much."

 

"I can't imagine why. That plant over there looks pretty dry, I bet it could take some watering."

 

Taekwoon sighed and almost killed one of the plants that he had just so carefully placed in the soil, out of pure exasperation. Luckily, he was able to stop himself from causing any real harm.

 

"Don't you have to be somewhere, Wonshik?"

 

"of course. I'm skipping laundry duty right now."

 

"Ah. So thats why I don't have a single clean shirt at the moment."

 

Wonshik only laughed and shrugged the way he always did when they talked about responsibilities or obeying the rules for once. While Taekwoon did not agree with everything the adults told them, he at least understood that it was necessary and actually helpful to have some sort of work around here in order to keep the really bad ones in check. Like the guy who beat up his own brother for being "the favorite son" in the family... Taekwoon would rather see guys like this with a basket of laundry in their hands instead of beating the shit out of another person. But Wonshik had a mind on his own. He hardly did what he was told, only when it was necessary for his ultimate cause. And his personal goal in life seemed to have become to pull Taekwoon towards the dark side as well, or so he claimed rather often.

 

"One day, I'll get you do to something fun for once. And no, lying about your health in order to get another dessert after dinner does not count because that's boring!"

 

Taekwoon simply rolled his eyes and continued grooming the garden. In moments like this, it was best not to argue with Wonshik and just leave it at that. And just as expected, Wonshik soon lost interest in watching Taekwoon work and went his own way again. Like he always did, at least until he showed up again with a new plan in hand.

 

\-------------------------

 

The storm was practically crashing around the house, making Taekwoon fear for the integrity of the roof and the thin outer walls. He'd never seen a storm like that before, so he didnt even try to sleep and instead stared out of the window in order to get a good look at the beautiful clouds and the thunder. It was loud, yes, too loud for Taekwoons liking. But it was also amazing to look at. Such a storm was a rare sight and the vast surroundings of the house gave him the opportunity to have an undisturbed view of the spectacle that was happening in the sky. It also gave him the chance to think about some things that have been going on inside his head. 

 

It's been almost half a year ever since he first arrived with that old bus. And so far, it hasn't been as awful as he'd first expected it to be. Of course, work was hard, he sometimes felt robbed of his free will when the kids were denied any real fun and he did not earn any money at all, only getting the food he was eating and a place to sleep in return. Being trapped in one place for such a long time was going on his nerves. And Wonshik's constant need to cause mischief was also not that easy to get used to. But overall, Taekwoon enjoyed the work here, he liked his room and he liked that he could be himself. At least more than before. Of course, Taekwoon would not admit for his life that this was at least partly due to Wonshik's efforts to befriend him.

 

A hesitant knock on his door pulled Taekwoon out of his thoughts. A few seconds later, Wonshik slipped through his door, barefooted and only wearing pyjama pants and a loose shirt that didn't match at all. And yet, Taekwoon couldn't help but think for at least one second that for once, the other looked really soft. Which might have also been because of his unguarded, almost fearful expression.

 

"Wonshik, what are you doing here? Is everything alright?"

 

Instead of answering, Wonshik simply slipped under the covers of Taekwoon's bed and pulled the sheets up to his nose. It was a ridiculous image, but Taekwoon stopped himself from laughing in case something was actually wrong and Wonshik wasn't playing one of his jokes again (like one time when Wonshik had successfully convinced Taekwoon that a ghost was living in his room and scared the living hell out of him with a stupid old doll, resulting in a chase around the house and Wonshik landing face first in the dirt - karma's a bitch sometimes).

 

Taekwoon approached Wonshik's curled up form and put a hand on the other's shoulder, hoping that the comforting gesture would get him to speak if he felt like sharing his troubles with him. Because honestly, it was scaring him a little to see Wonshik rendered speechless. He was not used to experiencing the other like this.

 

Wonshik sighed and leaned into Taekwoon's touch. But when the next thunder struck outside, he almost shrieked and crawled even deeper under the blanket.

 

"Wonshik... Are you by any chance scared of storms?"

 

Wonshik furiously shook his head, but the next howl of the wind paired with bright lightning outside quickly proved him wrong, making him almost shake in fear.

 

Taekwoon sighed and kindly asked Wonshik to make some room for him. Although the bed was hardly big enough to fit two people, it looked like Wonshik would stay the night, one way or another. They didn't exactly cuddle under the blanket, but there was still a lot of skin contact. Taekwoon shivered despite the warm temperature, but didn't comment on it. After a while, Wonshik shifted a bit so he could look at Taekwoons face and saw Taekwoon looking right back at him.

 

"Sorry for disturbing you like this. It's just... My mom left in a night like this and ever since, I can't take it to be alone when it's storming outside. Stupid, I know, but I can't help it. Sorry for burdening you with this."

 

As if fearful of Taekwoon's reaction, Wonshik hid his face against the other's shoulder and took a deep breath. It almost felt like Taekwoon's heart would burst upon seeing such a vulnerable gesture.

 

"Wonshik, it's not stupid at all. And you're not a burden to me. Never"

 

To Taekwoon's own surprise, it was true. Wonshik visibly relaxed upon hearing those words, even the thunder could not really disturb him this time. And even though it was hard to get used to hearing someone breathe right next to him, Taekwoon felt comfortable and soon fell asleep next to his friend.

 

\-------------------

 

It didn't feel right at all that Taekwoon had to look for Wonshik around the house. Normally, it was exactly the other way round. Wonshik had always been the one seeking out Taekwoon's presence, not even struggling to find the older boy no matter where he went or sometimes even hid. Something must have happened, he must be in trouble, for real this time, was all Taekwoon could think as he looked any places he could think of. But Wonshik was nowhere near their usual hiding spots and Taekwoon grew more desperate with any moment that passed without knowing where the other could have went. Only when he went outside, entering the mostly overgrown backyard of the house, he eventually found out that his worries were indeed justified.

 

„What do you want, punk? Do you think it's funny that your stupid pranks get everybody into trouble around here? You went too far this time!“

 

Taekwoon had no idea what this was about, but he didn't care. All he saw was that Wonshik was hopelessly outnumbered. Three guys were crowding him, all taller and broader. Taekwoon recognized the one that had spoken as the boy who had almost beaten his brother to death. Before Taekwoon could even take another step, the other two jumped at Wonshik and tackled him to the ground. Their leader only stood there and grinned as Wonshik was beaten by his two goons, until he stepped in to deliver some kicks to Wonshik's face who tried his best to shield his eyes and nose.

 

„Stop that, right now!“, Taekwoon shouted and ran towards the scene. The two on the ground actually startled and stopped holding Wonshik for just enough time so he could get away from them. Blood was running from his mouth and there was an ugly scratch at the top of his head, probably from the edge of the shoe that he was trampled with. He sent Taekwoon a look that was meant to signal him no, don't get yourself into this mess. But Taekwoon didn't care, he would not leave until Wonshik was safe. 

 

„What's the matter, quiet boy? Here to rescue this pathetic weakling? It's not worth it, I promise. You'll only get beaten as well, so leave as long as you have the chance.“

 

Again, Taekwoon refused to back down. Even if this would result in him getting injured, it would be worth it. And it's not like he didn't have one or two tricks up his sleeve on his own.

 

Talking to bullies like that was useless, that much Taekwoon knew from experience. So he mentally crossed out the possibility to resolve this peacefully and instead grabbed a handful of dirt that he could throw at the tall one's face. Not expecting such an attack, the boy coughed and stumbled, giving Taekwoon the opportunity to knock him down with a few pointed hits. Unfortunately, there were still two other guys behind him that quickly regained their posture and grabbed Taekwoon by the shoulders. And big guy was clearly angry now, rubbing the dirt from his eyes while he blindly kicked at Taekwoon's knees with full force. Several of the hits landed where they were supposed to, sending Taekwoon to the ground just like Wonshik before. Right, Wonshik - had he run off to get help or was he too injured to move? Taekwoon didn't know and was honestly more worried about his friend's whereabouts than his own situation, only faintly noticing that one of his legs stood in an awkward angle. However, this soon became a secondary problem as all three of the boys started hitting Taekwoon in the stomach. He couldn't even differentiate between fists and feet in that moment, he just thought that he should have grabbed Wonshik and run away instead of thinking that he could take three guys on his own. How foolish of him.

 

A loud noise echoed around the yard, followed by grunts of pain that did not belong to Taekwoon for a change. He looked up and saw Wonshik with a large, wooden board in his hand, pointedly swinging at all three of the bullies at once. Even with blood on his face and a grim expression, Wonshik looked wonderful in that moment, Taekwoon couldn't help but think. The board definitely did its job, every hit hurt at least three times as hard as Wonshik's bare fists would have been able to, and soon the three boys made a run for it. Relieved and not thinking that his injuries were that bad after all, Taekwoon heaved himself up on his feet and walked over to Wonshik who was gripping the board like his life depended on it. It might have actually been the case, now that Taekwoon thought about it.

 

„It's alright, they are gone. You can let go, Wonshik.“

 

Even now, Taekwoon was the voice of reason. Wonshik looked at him, saw how the older boy was clutching the right side of his torso and tried not to completely lose it in that moment.

 

„We have to get inside, come on. I'll support your weight.“

 

Taekwoon's room was the first one upstairs, so they chose this one as their place to get some rest. Wonshik helped his friend to sit on the bed and nervously ran his fingers through his own hair. Taekwoon noticed how several strands had escaped from the messy ponytail that Wonshik always sported and had to suppress the need to put them into place again.

 

„Why did you do that, you idiot? They were angry at me, not you. Should have just let me get beaten instead of getting yourself hurt!“

 

Taekwoon knew that Wonshik's anger was not real and that it came from a place of concern. He simply shrugged at Wonshik's question and frowned at the pain that surged through his body even after such a simple movement.

 

„Couldn't let you die there. Who else would stumble into my room in the middle of the night and bring me cheap whiskey?“

 

Wonshik stemmed his hands against his hips and huffed in disbelief.

 

„First of all, the whiskey was NOT cheap. Second, you are an idiot.“

 

„You already said that, I believe. Ouch ...“

 

Wonshik kneeled in front of Taekwoon and looked up at his friend. It was a rare sight to see Wonshik so concerned and open about his feelings, for once not deflecting with humor to avoid having a real conversation.

 

„Let me take a look at your injuries, ok? Don't want you to die from your own stupidity, especially not in a place like this ...“

 

Taekwoon allowed Wonshik to lift up his shirt, immediately revealing an angry red bruise that ran over the whole expanse of his right side. It wasn't hard to tell that this injury was way worse than anything that Wonshik had received during the fight.

 

„Taking from your expression, it doesn't look good for me. How long do I have to live, doc?“

 

Of all the times Taekwoon could have chosen to develop a sense of humor, did it really have to be this? Just as Wonshik wanted to scold him for talking so lightly about his health, Wonshik noticed several traces of injuries that were much older than the fresh bruise on the side. He raised his fingers to trace the lines of an especially long scar that ran along Taekwoon's chest, but the other boy quickly grabbed his wrist and pulled his shirt down again.

 

„Were those … that can't be from the fight earlier.“

 

„You're right. I don't want to talk about it though.“

 

The fact that Taekwoon actually sounded angry this time, unlike all the times before where he had been simply annoyed at Wonshik for pestering him, might have scared Wonshik even more than what they had just experienced. So he quickly pulled his hand out of Taekwoon's grasp and looked anywhere but the other's eyes.

 

„I'm sorry. I shouldn't be so nosy. I was just worried.“

 

Taekwoon sighed and relaxed a bit. It wasn't Wonshik's fault for seeing how fucked up he was after all and he felt like he owed the other an explanation.

 

„It's alright. And you're not wrong, those wounds are not from here. My parents took turns beating me up when I was still living at home … before youth welfare sent me here.“

 

„Took turns? Why would they do that?!“

 

„It's … a long story. My mom could be the sweetest person you have ever seen. But when she drank, she blamed me for all her problems. She said that without me, she could have left my father a long time ago and would live a better life. Then she'd hit me with whatever bottle she'd just emptied until she'd grow tired and pass out on the floor.“

 

„And your dad?“

 

„Well, that's almost the same story, only the other way round. He blamed me for the way mom had become, saying that I should have never been born and they would be happier without me.“

 

Wonshik clenched his fist and tried to resist the urge to punch a hole in the bedframe, only to release some of the frustration he felt upon hearing Taekwoon's story.

 

„That's horrible! Who would say such a thing to their own child, I can't believe it!“

 

Again, Taekwoon only shrugged, although more careful this time to spare himself from the searing pain. An awkward silence fell between the two of them which was only broken once Wonshik spoke up again.

 

„My mom left when I was really young. Can't even remember her face anymore … Dad burned all the pictures he had from her. I hardly ever saw him after that and I was mostly on my own, so I did what I wanted and got into so much trouble … I guess I wanted to disappoint him the way he had disappointed me because he wasn't there for me.“

 

„And when he had to bail you out, you could at least see him I suppose?“

 

„Exactly. We played this cat and mouse game until he got sick of it one day and sent me here.“

 

„I see …“

 

Taekwoon felt the need to add something to their conversation. Something that would express his gratitude for meeting Wonshik, even if it got him into this painful situation. But when he opened his mouth, it felt like all air escaped his lungs at once. Wonshik jumped out of his position on the floor as soon as he saw that Taekwoon was struggling and tried to help him, but he had no idea what was wrong and could only desperately try to stop Taekwoon from tumbling over.

 

„Taekwoon, what's happening? How can I help you, please!“

 

„It's just … hard to breathe suddenly. Leave me and get some help.“

 

Wonshik wanted nothing more than to stay and protest. But he knew that he had no way of helping Taekwoon if he didn't get someone who knew what to do. So he ran as quickly as he could to the nurse's room, happy that he knew where it was by heart until now. He burst through the door and begged the nurse to come with him, but of course, the woman knew who Wonshik was and refused to help at first.

 

„Oh no, I have heard enough about you to fall for any of your tricks. I will stay right here and you will stop with this nonsense.“

 

„I swear, I am not lying! It's my friend, he is injured and I don't know what's wrong with him! I am begging you, believe me just this once and HELP HIM!“

 

Something in Wonshik's words finally stirred the stubborn woman to move and see for herself whether his cry for help was actually for real. When they arrived at Taekwoon's room, the boy had managed to lie down sideways on his bed, but his face was pale and his breathing was ragged.

 

As soon as the nurse saw that something was actually wrong, she immediately went into work mode and checked Taekwoon's current state. She asked him a variety of questions and Wonshik admired how professional she remained while he was literally freaking the fuck out right next to her. After what seemed like an eternity to Wonshik, she simply stated:

 

„We can't do anything for him here. He probably has a few broken ribs and internal bleeding. We'll get him to a hospital and they will take care of it.“

 

Broken ribs … internal bleeding … Wonshik wasn't entirely sure what this meant for Taekwoon and how dangerous the situation really was, but it sounded bad. While the nurse called for an ambulance and constantly checked Taekwoon's pulse, position and breathing until they arrived, Wonshik did his utmost to keep Taekwoon awake. He basically just kept talking nonsense for minutes without a pause, switching from topic to topic and never expecting Taekwoon to answer anything, even when he would sometimes throw a random question into the mix. And yet, it helped and Taekwoon was concious enough to be safely taken to the hospital without further injury.

 

When Wonshik wanted to climb into the ambulance to go with his friend, determined not to leave his side at any time, the nurse held him back with a strong grip.

 

„No, you stay here. I know you are worried about him, but only family would be allowed to go with him. I will treat your injuries here, you look quite beaten yourself. And then you will tell the director how this happened exactly.“

 

Wonshik struggled a bit, but basically had no power left inside his muscles to really put up a fight agaist her. He only faintly whispered:

 

„But I'm his family ...“ 

 

\----------------------------

 

The drive to the next hospital was awfully long, but the ambulance managed to arrive in time. Taekwoon fully recovered from his injuries, which have been numerous. He had indeed suffered three broken ribs and one of them had pierced through some of the existential tissues of his chest, causing an internal bleeding just like the nurse had estimated. His sprained knee was the least of the doctor's worries at that point, but they succeeded in fixing that as well. Even after hearing that Taekwoon would be alright, waiting for the return of his friend was pure horror for Wonshik. And when when the car that would bring his friend home finally pulled into the driveway of the institution, Wonshik ran outside and immediately pulled Taekwoon into an almost crushing hug as soon as he left the vehicle.

 

„Easy, easy. Do you want another rib to break? Because that's what will happen if you keep squeezing me like a bottle of ketchup.“

 

As if struck by lightning, Wonshik let go in an instant and backed at least three meters away. Taekwoon could only laugh when Wonshik fake-casually slipped his hands inside the pockets of his washed out jeans and tried to look as innocent as possible.

 

„I was just kidding. I'm fine, Wonshik.“

 

„Are you sure? Cause you won't be if I kill you for scaring the living shit out of me with your near death experience, alright?“

 

Taekwoon chuckled and retrieved his bag from the backseat of the car.

 

„Shall we go inside? I can tell you about the different shapes and sizes of the needles they put inside me while I was there. Oh and how awful the food was! Can you believe I would one day miss the cooking of the housekeepers here? Amazing, right?“

 

Wonshik shook his head. It was beyond him how someone could come back looking so cheerful after being practically tied to a hospital bed for such a long time. And almost dying of course. A sad voice inside his head told him that apparently, Taekwoon hadn't missed him as much as Wonshik had missed the other … but who could really blame him after he nearly died because Wonshik couldn't keep his damn mouth shut.

 

„Actually, you've just arrived in time for dinner. If you're hungry ...“

 

„Are you kidding? I am starving, let's go!“

 

As usual, Taekwoon and Wonshik sat next to each other, a bit further away from the commotion around the main dining area. Although Taekwoon had claimed to be starving, he did not touch his food at all and only stared at his fork for solid ten minutes. Or at least that's about as long as it took Wonshik to finally come to the conclusion that his foolish hopes that Taekwoon could ever forgive him were for nothing.

 

For some reason, Wonshik felt on the brink of crying right there. All the tension from waiting and worrying about his friend seemed to have nowhere else to go at that moment. He couldn't bear to look at Taekwoon anymore and tried to blink the tears away that formed in his eyes, until he suddenly felt Taekwoon's hand grabbing his own under the table. Being his unsuspicious self (not), Wonshik audibly gasped (which sounded hilarious to Taekwoon, but he wouldn't tell him that), looked at his hand and then at his friend who only smiled shyly.

 

„You know what? I'm not really hungry now. Can we talk?“

 

Wonshik nodded and allowed Taekwoon to pull him towards their usual meeting spot, which was of course Taekwoon's room. The door closed behind them and within seconds, Wonshik's back met the wooden surface of the door as Taekwoon unashamedly kissed him on the lips. It happened so fast, Wonshik was barely able to move at all. And when Taekwoon backed away, it must have looked like Wonshik was disgusted instead of simply surprised, or else Taekwoon would not have asked:

 

„Hey, was that OK? I'm sorry if it wasn't. I thought that because of the hug and everything, you would finally see me as more than just a friend and … sorry if I misunderstood.“

 

Instead of answering, Wonshik grabbed Taekwoon by his neck and drew him closer, capturing his lips in a kiss that lasted longer than the first one and tasted like everything Wonshik wanted in life. When their tongues met – it was hard to tell who started it first and Wonshik would later be very regretful that so much about this moment would feel like a blurr to him – Taekwoon groaned and brought their bodies unbelievably closer together. 

 

„Want to take this any further? We don't have to, we can just stop and -“

 

„Hell no. Not after I've waited weeks for you to come back to me, idiot.“

 

Taekwoon grinned and guided Wonshik towards his bed. Wonshik comfortably placed his weight on Taekwoon's lap and made a delighted noise when both of them finally got rid of their offensive clothing while never stopping to kiss each other. The only piece of farbic that was left in the end was the bandage that was still wound around Taekwoon's torso. The sight of it made Wonshik hesitate and he again felt regretful for what had happened to Taekwoon because of him.

 

„Don't worry about it. I know you probably feel at fault, but I'm the only one to blame. I chose this and I would do it again to protect you.“

 

Wonshik weakly shook his head, still staring at the proof of his bad decisions. The other scars on Taekwoon's body could never hurt Wonshik as much as the wounds that were inflicted upon Taekwoon due to his mistakes.

 

„I promise I won't cause any more trouble. Really, I don't want that to ever happen again. Not to you.“

 

„Shut up, silly. The boy that caused trouble wherever he went is exactly the one I fell in love with, so don't change for the sake of being someone you don't want to be. No matter what you do, I love you.“

 

Completely at a loss for any other way of showing Taekwoon how he felt, Wonshik kissed him again with an impact that made Taekwoon fall back against the bedsheets. Both of them lay on their sides then, facing each other and taking their sweet time exploring what made the other feel good, what kind of touch would cause a soft sigh and what would almost make them moan out load, disregarding the fact that others lived in this house as well. But when it came to the most obvious body part that needed to be touched, Wonshik was not really sure what he should do.

 

„Just do to me what you would do to yourself. Easy as that“, Taekwoon instructed before taking care of Wonshik's own erection. The other's teasing touch almost made Wonshik forget what he was about to do, but then he quickly regained his mind and did what he was told. He felt immensely proud when Taekwoon came first against Wonshik's hand. Seconds later, Wonshik followed with a groan and leaned his forehead against Taekwoon's chest.

 

„See? Easy. You are a natural.“

 

Wonshik laughed, feeling out of breath and deliriously happy at the same time.

 

„You talk too much, you idiot.“

 

„Big talk, coming from the biggest loudmouth I have ever met.“

 

„I love you, too.“

 

Taekwoon froze and lost his entire train of thought in that moment. It felt too good to be true to know that Wonshik actually felt the same way about him, even after what had just happened between them. It would take him at least a few days to finally come to grips with the fact that Wonshik was truly his now.

 

Wonshik only smiled and gave Taekwoon an innocent peck on the lips before fully cuddling against his chest.

 

„Let's take a nap and when everybody is sleeping, we can steal some liquor from the cook. I know for a fact that he keeps a good bottle in the highest cupboard. And when we get caught, I will just blame it on you, they will give you a free pass after all the shit you went through.“

 

„Alright. Nap sounds great, the rest is up for debate.“

 

„If you say so.“

 

Taekwoon rolled his eyes, but real annoyance had no room inside his mind. It was filled with the certainty that he had finally found the meaning to his life.


End file.
